Using templates can help you save time when you are adding new customers and prospects to your system. You can use templates to reuse information in multiple customer and prospect records.
For example, let's say that you are setting up a template called Template - Non-Profit. (In other words, this is what you'll type in the Name field on the Master screen.) This template may have certain fields on the Master, Accounting, Pricing, and Preferences screens set a particular way for all or many of your non-profit customers. Maybe most of your non-profit customers typically are invoiced on the same invoice cycle (as indicated on the Accounting screen), and the same discount pricing is used (as indicated on the Pricing screen). You can create a template that takes into account all of these "typical" settings. Then anytime users need to add a new non-profit customer or prospect, they can use this template; this allows them to avoid having to reenter and reselect all of the typical settings. If necessary, they can override any typical settings on any of the Customer Maintenance screens for a particular customer.
The Search screen on the Customer Maintenance tab is where you start when you would like to create a new template or modify an existing one. Instructions for both are provided below.
On the Customer Maintenance tab, click the Search button. The Search screen appears.
Click the New button. The view switches to the Master screen on the Customer Maintenance tab, with blank fields.
Select the Template option.
Note: The only time the Template check box is available is when you are creating a new customer record.
In the Name field, enter a name for the template. Name it something that will be easily searchable and identified by users who will be accessing the template and copying it. (For more information, please refer to Add a new customer or prospect based on a template.)
Fill in the customer data fields on the Master, Accounting, Pricing, and Preferences screens as appropriate.
The Ship To Main, Ship To Pricing, Ship To Preferences, Billing Codes, and Contacts screens are not available because these screens are used for customer-specific data only.
On the Customer Maintenance tab, click the Search button. The Search screen appears.
In the Customer field, type the name of the template, or part of it. (This was entered in the Customer # field or the Name field on the Master screen when the template was created.)
Click the Search button or press Enter. If only one template meets your search criteria, the corresponding information is provided on the Search screen.
If more than one template or customer record meets your search criteria, the corresponding templates and customers are identified in the customer listing at the bottom of the Search screen. To select the appropriate template, click the appropriate row in the listing.
Make changes to any of the customer data screens (the Master, Accounting, Pricing, and Preferences screens) on the Customer Maintenance tab as appropriate.
The Ship To Main, Ship To Pricing, Ship To Preferences, Billing Codes, and Contacts screens are not available because these screens are used for customer-specific data only.
Note: The Customer Maintenance tab is the only place in Vision where you can search for and review customer template records. This is to prevent users from accidentally creating an order for a customer template record.